Dog is finally adopted after FIVE YEARS after picture with heartwarming message goes viral

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A heartbreaking photo of a six-year-old Pit mix appeared on an animal shelter's Facebook page
The rescue center was inundated with calls about the dog
After just a few hours, the photo of Chester had been shared 6,000 times
A family was found to take care of him within days of the posting

Published: 16:09 EST, 5 April 2015 | Updated: 05:36 EST, 6 April 2015

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A dog who was living in a shelter for the past five years has finally gone home to a loving family in New York state after his photo was shared on social media.

Chester, a 6-year-old Pit Bull mix, had been housed at the North Fork Animal Welfare League on Long Island.

The poor pooch had been living in New York state shelters since 2010 and it looked as though things were going to remain that way, until a picture that was shared online garnered sympathy from across the country.

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How could you say no? This is the picture that secured Chester a loving home

Long-time coming: Chester, a six-year-old pit bull, was found as a stray and had been living in shelters for the past five years

Welcome to the family: On Friday morning, Dana Dor, her husband Adi, and their boys, Aidan and Brandon, headed from their Lake Ronkonkoma home to meet Chester

The shelter, which is based in Riverhead on Long Island posted a picture on Thursday that was hard for dog-lovers to resist.

It showed Chester with a sign around his neck. An image that was clearly designed to tug at the heartstrings of dog-lovers.

'Why doesn't anybody want me? I've been waiting 5 years. Everyone at the shelter tells me what a good boy I am. So why has no one adopted me? I promised to be good and love my new family. Please maybe you are my new family/ I sit and wait for you to come,' the message pleaded.

The picture was shared more than 6,000 times and inquires about adopting Chester poured in from all over the world.

'It was crazy. I posted the original photo on the League's Facebook page and by later that day there were over 6000 shares,' NFAWL manager Gabby Stroup said.

'There were more phone calls then I can count; the phone just never stopped. People called from Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, Mississippi, Michigan, Oregon, New Jersey Wisconsin, Nova Scotia, Australia and more — people were tearing up as they called.'

Tugging at heartstrings: Staring with his sad puppy dog eyes into the camera, Chester sat with a paw draped over a sign which read: 'Why doesn't anybody want me?

Saying goodbye: Saturday morning, volunteers came to the shelter to say good-bye to Chester, a longtime favorite among those who'd come regularly to walk him and give him belly rubs and kisses

Within a couple of days of the posting, Chester was adopted by a family with two sons from New York. They came to take him home on Saturday.

'A woman named Dana called me inquiring about him; a friend of hers from Michigan had shared Chester's picture on her page,' Ms Stroup said. 'Dana and I talked about Chester for a bit; she wanted to talk it over with her family.'

On Friday morning, Dana Dor, her husband Adi, and their boys, Aidan and Brandon, headed from their Lake Ronkonkoma home to meet Chester. 'They came and met him and it is just a perfect match,' Stroup said to Southold Local.com

'It was by far the most amazing thing I have ever seen — the amount of people who shared and called or emailed was amazing. This was one of the happiest days,' Ms Stroup said.

Yesterday morning, volunteers came to the shelter to say good-bye to Chester.

After five years, he had become a longtime favorite among those who'd come regularly to walk him.

So happy together: Dana Dor said the family lost two Yorkies, five years ago, the same amount of time that Chester has been waiting for his forever family. 'We think he was waiting for us,' Mrs Dor said

Part of the family: Adi Dor sets up a cage for Chester to sleep in at his new home

Settling in: Chester had found his perfect match in the Dor family and was soon taken for a new life at their Lake Ronkonkoma home

Shelter tries to lure adopters with video of lovable Chester

The Dors arrived and Chester seemed to like the family instantly, covering their faces with licks and kisses.

'We saw him and we felt connected. It was meant to be, ' Adi Dor said; his wife said her husband had tears in his eyes the first time he met Chester.

Their two young boys were delighted with the new addition to their family. They had been asking for a dog for some time.

Ms Stroup said it was all down to the power of Facebook and the pleading message that hung around Chester's neck.

The shelter has received a lot of attention as a result of Chester's plight and intends to use it's Facebook page to help other long-term residents of the refuge find new homes.

Puppy power: Using the power of social media the animal shelter took a picture of the poor pooch and posted it onto a Facebook page where it received 6,000 likes and Chester found a loving home